Page 29 of Following His Orders

“Right. Sorry.” I shake my head, trying to clear the lust-filled fog, and take a step back.

“I love you, Bentley Johnson.”

My heart does that flutter it does every time I hear him say those words, and I feel what has to be the goofiest smile spread across my lips. “I love you too,” I tell him.

* * *

I’ve been stewingover my decision to stay at the firm since the other day. Throughout the week, I’ve changed my mind a thousand times, but now I know what I have to do. I’ve made up my mind. Am I a chickenshit for waiting until Friday afternoon to do this? Probably, but you can’t blame a girl for wanting to hide out all weekend without facing the consequences of her actions. I know Nathan is not going to like the fact I’m quitting. But I’ll find a way to make him understand. I have to.

I’ve typed up my letter of resignation, and I’ve read over my contract. I have to provide four weeks’ written notice before I can leave the company. There isn’t a chance in hell I’m handing this to Nathan. I walk up to Shardonnay. I plan on handing this letter over to Xavier, based solely on the fact that his name is first on the wall. And he’s not Nathan.

“Hi, Shar, is Xavier free?” I ask, stopping at her desk.

“Ah, let me check.” She picks up the phone.

“Bentley is wanting to see you, sir,” she says. Returning the handset to the receptacle, she peers up at me, her face a little red. “You can go in,” she says with a smile.

“What kind of mood is he in?” I question before approaching the door to his office.

“Ah…” She hesitates.

“I need to ask him a favour and the chances of him reaming me out and telling me where to go depend on his mood,” I explain nervously. “Actually, maybe I should just ask Alistair.”

“He’s in a good mood. I think,” she says.

“Okay, here goes nothing.” I knock on the door and wait until Xavier looks up from his desk before entering.

“Bentley, come in.”

I close the door, approach the chair in front of him, and take a seat. “Thank you for seeing me.”

“My office is always open to you, Bentley. What can I do for you?” He seems to be in a good mood, like Shardonnay mentioned, so hopefully this won’t be as bad as I thought it would be. The rumours around the office are that Xavier is an ass. I mean, I’ve never seen it. He’s always been super polite and nice to me.

“I’m resigning. I have my letter here. This is the start of my four weeks’ notice,” I tell him as I pass the typed document across his desk.

“Hold up. Can you repeat that? Because I swear you just said you were resigning,” Xavier says.

“I did. And I am?”

“What the fuck? No, you’re not.” His voice rises to the point I’m sure anyone in the hallway can hear it.

“I’m really sorry. I appreciate the opportunity. It’s just not working out for me,” I tell him.

“Like fuck it’s not working out for you. I’m going to forget this conversation, Bentley. We will pretend it didn’t happen, that you aren’t throwing your whole fucking career away on a whim.”

“I’m not going to change my mind. I’m sorry.” I shake my head and push to my feet, leaving my typed-out resignation letter on his desk. Then I walk out of his office with a smile and a sudden sense of relief. I’ve made the right choice for me. For me and Nathan.

“What happened?” Shar asks me as I pass her desk.

“I gave him my four weeks’ notice,” I tell her.

Her mouth drops open in shock. “Why?”

“There are other things I want out of life. This job, it’s one of them, but it’s suddenly not the most important. I can be a lawyer at any firm. Who knows? I might even start my own,” I say, and grin at the idea.

“But you love it here. You told me just last week,” she reminds me.

As I’m walking back into my office, I see Shardonnay knock on Nathan’s door. About five minutes later, the whole office goes quiet—well, apart from all three partners’ voices, which seem to be in competition over who can yell the loudest.

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